Conventional firearms, such as gunpowder and ballistic projectile based rifles are typically loud, generate a visible flash, show up in Forward looking infrared (FLIR) imagery as hot sources after usage, generate a recoil kickback, have bullet drop trajectories that are impacted by wind and gravity over long distances, consume ammunition that must be carried and cannot be replenished in the field from renewable sources, and may send bullets that travel past the intended target and strike unintended targets out of sight of the user. It is difficult to use these devices without drawing attention, even with flash and noise suppressors, and dangerous to use in an urban setting without possible unintended targets being injured or killed by stray fire. Also, mounting such a device on a small robot or miniature unmanned flying machine can unbalance them if they are used, or disturb the pointing of a lightweight pan-tilt platform.